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Leyland James Kirby, “Neon Lit Atoms” MP3

The words "limited edition" are an energy pack for music nerds. We define our fandom by our ability to be one of a lucky few to get our sweaty palms on whatever our music heroes press in small quantities. It's hard to imagine proper music fandom existing without the allure of the rare-release. But how does an artist manufacture exclusivity in today's digital realm? Leyland James Kirby, prolific sound butcher of a thousand aliases (Caretaker, V/Vm) whose '09 epic Sadly The Future Is No Linger What It Was stands as one of the finest ambient efforts in recent years, may have found the key to salvaging the model by offering what is probably the world's first limited edition mp3 subscription. The first 500 folks to drop £15 (or more if they prefer, Radiohead-style) are guaranteed first dibs on downloads of four EPs and three albums, across alter-egos as well as the excitingly vague promises of "bonus unreleased material," "extra tracks through the year," "any other new releases (excluding re-issues)." And it's for a good cause, naturally:

My hope is to sell as many subscriptions as I can before June the 1st as this would raise much needed funds here which will enable me to update and upgrade my computer equipment thus helping me make more music and to finish more planned projects.

Check "Neon Lit Atoms," from the first installment of his odds and sods series Intrigue and Stuff.